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RailRiders to host 2020 Triple-A All-Star Game

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JASON FARMER / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER The RailRiders unveil the logo Thursday as they announce they will host the 2020 Triple-A All-Star Game at PNC Field.

Twenty-five years after an up-and-coming Derek Jeter suited up for the American League squad at Lackawanna County Stadium, the Triple-A All-Star Game will return to Moosic.

The RailRiders will host the 2020 all-star game at PNC Field, the team announced Thursday. The game will see the International League take on the Pacific Coast League on July 15, 2020, with the Lackawanna County Convention and Visitors Bureau serving as presenting sponsor.

“This is hands down the top event that you can host in minor league sports,” said Josh Olerud, RailRiders team president and general manager.

Festivities begin July 13 with a reception at a location yet to be determined. A home run derby, skills challenge and celebrity softball game will be July 14 at PNC Field. Olerud said he expects tickets to go on sale around this season’s all-star break.

The IL’s interest in the RailRiders hosting the all-star game grew when the team hosted the Triple-A National Championship Game in 2017.

“The league was impressed with the way we went about it, thought outside the box, did some things a little bit different than it was in the past, and that if we wanted to be on the voting board for the 2020 (all-star) game, would we be interested,” Olerud said.

After a vote at last year’s winter meetings, the RailRiders knew they would be hosting in 2020.

“I think the national championship game just gave us an idea, with this staff that had never been down that road — I’ve done an all-star game in 2009 and obviously have attended many — that we can start picking and choosing different things that we’ve enjoyed or experienced, kind of make them our own and bring them into here and into PNC Field,” Olerud said.

“So, I think it was big to get that national championship game down first. Because the opportunities and the amount of people that are going to be here, just the different festivities that we can do, it’s a lot bigger task that we can take on.”

The National Championship Game — which featured the Durham Bulls playing the Memphis Redbirds — saw 9,383 fans at PNC Field. Olerud said the RailRiders will carry over some aspects from that game; there will be a fanfest before the all-star game and the July 14 events will have a Stand Up To Cancer component.

“It’s going to be huge economically for the area,” Olerud said, adding the Hilton Downtown Scranton Hotel and Conference Center will be the host hotel and that he expects to reserve many of the rooms at the hotels on Montage Mountain.

With the Convention and Visitors Bureau serving as sponsor, the week’s events will all take place in Lackawanna County.

“The second (Olerud) told me that they were getting it, we were on board,” said Curt Camoni, executive director of the Lackawanna County Convention and Visitors Bureau. “Obviously, our board had to vote on it and we had to work out particulars, but this is a no-brainer; especially to keep everything involved with this in Lackawanna County. Before you even talk about a fan, you’re talking 400 hotel rooms just for this event, with executives and players from both teams over the course of three days.”

Camoni, who worked for the RailRiders before taking his job with the county, said he’s been in contact with International League president Randy Mobley and several teams who have hosted all-star games, trying to figure out the economic impact it has on an area.

“It is a difficult one to project,” Camoni said. “I was running it through all the different algorithms that we have, and it’s tough to project, only because you don’t know what percentage of the tickets you’re going to sell locally versus outside (the area).

“I’ll be able to get a projection after the event, but this is easy to project to be a winner for Lackawanna County.”

Olerud made the announcement then unveiled the logo for the game. The gray, blue and red star-shaped patch features the stadium’s main entrance in front of a mountain. There’s also a keystone accent on a red ribbon between “PNC FIELD” and “MOOSIC PA.”

Jeter was the big name when the Red Barons hosted the 1995 game. The 21-year-old Columbus Clippers shortstop went 2 for 3 with a double and a run in the American League’s 9-0 win. Mets prospect Jason Isringhausen took the loss for the National League. Jeromy Burnitz drove in two runs. Mark Loretta, Ron Coomer and Karim Garcia each went 0 for 2. Dave Tokeim and Kevin Jordan were the Red Barons’ representatives and combined to got 0 for 3. Former Red Barons manager Marc Bombard and Eynon native Gary Ruby served on the coaching staffs.

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